EP 2226245 relates to a drive system for a vessel, comprising at least one drive shaft driving a propeller, an arrangement of electric drives disposed on the drive shaft, an arrangement of generators for supplying power to the electrical drives, and a control unit. The power supplied to the propeller by means of the electric drives can be controlled by means of the control unit as a function of the characteristic curve of the propeller, which defines the maximum achievable thrust of the propeller as a function of the rotational speed.